Jimmy sat beside the flickering campfire, nibbling on a ripe, blue-speckled fruit. The warmth from the flames licked the cool night air, but a strange stillness pressed against his chest.
Something felt off.
"Luna," he said slowly, staring into the crackling fire, "do you… feel it too? Like time isn't… behaving the way it should?"
Luna looked up from her stretch, eyes narrowed. "What do you mean?"
Jimmy shook his head. "Like we're here—but not fully here. As if something's missing… like we're late, or early, or in between something that already happened."
Luna tilted her head, concerned, but said nothing more. Jimmy didn't press. Instead, he took another bite, sighed, and tossed the fruit core into the flames.
"Let's not move tonight," he muttered. "We've reached the border of the First Line. No need to risk walking into something stronger than us in the dark. Whisps don't always sleep."
"Agreed," Luna nodded. "And that thing from earlier... still lingers in my fur."
They lay low by the fire, discussing Luna's recent attacks—where she could improve, how to better time her electric pulses with water pressure. Luna insisted her move was perfect; Jimmy teased her for nearly hitting him last time. The mood lightened.
Then—
A rustle.
Both froze.
From the dark bushes beyond their firelight, a whisp emerged—Velvynox,
its violet exoskeleton soft with a velvet-like fuzz, catching moonlight in scattered glimmers. It stood on ten slender legs, each narrowed toward the tips, ballerina-like step despite its eerie insectoid shape. Its abdomen was rounded and furry, with fine threads of silk coiled beneath it like gathered yarn. Above its head curved two feathery antennae, Faint blue static flickered between their tips when it was distressed or focused. Its eight eyes were arranged in a crescent pattern, the main two larger and glowing faintly with a dull silver, like polished quartz.
Jimmy raised an eyebrow. "Talk to it. If it's friendly, find out what it wants."
Luna stood, her mane sparking with faint static. "I'm not a translator service," she grumbled, but stepped forward, letting her hooves crackle a bit just to make her point.
The spider immediately flinched and raised its front legs. Then, to their surprise, it dropped its head and whispered in a timid, shaky voice.
"P–Pei… Peep. Help me... please."
Jimmy stood slowly. "What happened to you?"
The spider shivered, then pointed one trembling leg behind him toward the deeper woods. He tried to speak again, but his mandibles clicked uselessly.
Jimmy exhaled. "Alright. Luna, stay close. Let's follow. But keep your senses sharp."
They moved through the underbrush cautiously, guided by the spider's quick but uneven pace. The deeper they went, the thicker the mist became. Strange sounds echoed faintly—a whistle here, a scratch there.
After about fifteen minutes, the spider paused and raised a leg.
"We're here…" he said softly.
Jimmy squinted ahead. "There. A cave."
It was carved into a low ridge, mouth dark and yawning like something horror scene. Jimmy stepped forward to check it on map and he marks it—but as he did, the spider suddenly scurried forward and disappeared into the shadows.
"Wait!" Jimmy called. "Luna, don't rush."
They stood at the cave's edge. Inside, it was silent.
Too silent.
Five minutes passed. Jimmy checked his surroundings, but saw nothing.
Then—
ScreeeeeCHHH!
Multiple shrieks echoed from inside the cave, overlapping like metal scraping on bone.
Jimmy's instincts kicked in. "Luna, water wave and ice pulse. Get ready!"
Luna tensed, hooves digging into the dirt. The air shifted. Out from the cave came dozens—no, scores—of spider-like Whisps. Golden and silver patterns shimmered on their backs, but they were clearly injured. Deep gashes, dried ichor, cracked limbs. They weren't attacking.
They were suffering.
The spider from before reappeared, limping slightly. "Can… can you help them?" he asked, voice barely audible. "Please…"
Jimmy hesitated. "Luna…?"
She looked at him, uncertain. "It'll drain me, especially this many…"
The spider stepped forward again. "You don't have to fight. Just help. We'll give you anything. We're not dangerous."
Jimmy knelt beside one of the smaller injured spiders, who weakly clung to life. "We don't need anything," he said, voice firm but calm. "We just want to pass through safely. Can you tell us a way out of here—some safe road through the ridge?"
The spider nodded. "Yes… I promise."
Luna closed her eyes. "Alright," she muttered, mane glowing softly. "But if any of you jump at me, you'll taste frost and lightning."
With that, she stepped forward. Her aura pulsed outward like gentle ripples over still water. A soft blue glow enveloped the wounded. The healing began.
Jimmy watched silently as the injured Whisps began to stir, the pain visibly leaving their bodies.
But deep inside, he still felt that tug—that pull of something wrong. As if something much older was watching from the cave.
.................
After healing 50 of them; Luna exhaled hard, shoulders trembling.
"I… need to rest."
Her fur shimmered faintly, dim from overuse. Sparks fizzled gently from her mane as she curled up beside the small campfire, breath shallow but steady.
Jimmy knelt next to her without a word. He pulled out the last of the fruit they'd gathered—just a handful. He peeled one and held it out gently.
"Eat slow," he murmured. "You've done enough."
Some came forward by asking 'peee,,,, peee..... was she not going to heal us?' Jimmy said 'Don't worry; she will do it again after eating food.'
She nibbled tiredly, grateful but barely able to chew.
As she ate, a few of the spider Whisps crept closer—the golden-and-silver ones she had healed earlier. Eyes wide, they stared at the fruit.
Jimmy glanced at them, then back at the dwindling supply. Only 5 or 6 fruits left.
"…You want some?" he asked softly.
The Whisps didn't reply—but didn't back away either.
Jimmy smiled faintly and tossed the fruit pieces toward them. "Eat well. I'll get more."
He stood, brushing dirt from his coat, ready to head back out into the forest—
But then—
A deep vibration.
Chattering filled the air. Footsteps. Dozens. No—hundreds.
From the far end of the tunnel, more Whisps were arriving—an entire swarm, carrying leaves, fruits, berries—armfuls of glowing, aromatic food offerings. The cave filled with warm golden light as they laid everything down in front of Jimmy and Luna, as if in silent gratitude.
Jimmy blinked. "What the—?"
Luna raised her head slowly, her tired eyes lighting up. One of the earlier spiders—the one who had first approached them—stepped forward again.
"You can eat them," it said in a trembling, broken voice. "Please… heal us all. Please…"
Jimmy hesitated, looking over the strange fruits.
He picked one, sniffed it, checked for markings, then bit a small piece.
Safe. Sweet. Cool.
"Alright," he said. "They're fine."
Luna nodded, then began eating slowly again—and the healing began once more. Pulses of blue and silver light rippled from her body in waves, every 15 minutes, wrapping around the injured Whisps like soft silk.
She continued this rhythm—eat, heal, rest, repeat—for hours.
The cave became a sanctuary. Whisps lined up patiently.
Some even used their own powers to clean the dirt from the ground, smooth the walls, and create glowing mushrooms to light the space.
Seven hours passed.
Then, silence.
All of the injured had been restored—perfectly, completely. Some spun webs of pure light in gratitude. Others left tiny stones at Luna's feet, as if to say thank you.
The lead Whisp stepped forward again.
"Can you help us… one more time?"
Luna rubbed her temples, exhausted. "What now?"
Jimmy sighed, cracking his neck. "Listen—we are not going deeper into that cave. That's where we draw the line."
The spider Whisp didn't argue. It simply scratched its fuzzy head with two legs, then turned—and crawled between the crowd of its kin.
Jimmy turned to Luna. "Looks like we're done here, huh?"
They both started walking toward the exit, but—
All of them turned. Together.
Their bodies shimmered, mandibles clacking softly in unison.
"Wait."
The cave pulsed.
A low rumble echoed beneath their feet—the ground began to shake.
Dust fell from the ceiling. The light dimmed.
Something deep in the cave was waking.
Jimmy froze.
Luna tensed.
.........
But something was waking up.
Something deeper.
A presence was rising.
Was it good?Was it dangerous?No one knew.
To be continued.